Trouser-pressing apparatus



Feb. 4, 1969 H. FUHRING ET AL TROUSER-PRESSING APPARATUS Sheet Filed Jan. 2Q. 1966 Prior Arf Heinrich F Uhring Erwm Pcfrlch INVENTORS.

Feb. 4, 1969 FUHmNG ETAL 3,425,141

TROUSER-PRESSING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 20, 1966 Sheet 2 of 4 3 EEEEEEEEEE FIG 7 Heinrich F L'ihring Erwin Pe frich INVENTORS.

H. FUHRING ET Al- TROUSER-PRESSING APPARATUS Feb. 4, 1969 Sheet Filed Jan. 20, 1966 Heinrich F Uhring Erwm Petr/ch INVENTORS.

To 6 Jnesfem Feb. 4, 1969 H.FUHR|NG ETAL 3,425,141

TROUSER-PRESSING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 20,.1966 Sheet of 4 FIG. 70

Heinrich F Uhring Erwin Pei-rich IN VEN TORS.

United States Patent B 80,209 US. Cl. 38-21 15 Claims Int. Cl. D06f 71/00, 71/08; D0 6c 15/00 ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Trouser-pressing machine with a pair of generally rectangular press plates and a flat insert of similar configuration therebetween, the plates and theinsert being formed with coextensive recesses or cutouts which extend inwardly from one of the minor sides of the rectangle and have each a U-shaped bight portion remote from that minor side and a trapezoidal portion proximal to that side, the flanks of the trapezoid diverging more rapidly than the extremities of the U. A stretching attachment, designed to grip the waistband of the trousers and to blow air or steam into same, may be movably mounted adjacent the recessed side of the plate assembly. The cutout of the lower plate may be underlain by a foreshortenable two-piece bottom plate to support the seat-portion of the trousers to be pressed.

The invention relates to a trouser-pressing device having a pair of press plates which can be moved towards each other and are each provided on one edge with a recess or cutout for the top portion of the trousers. Such ironing presses, in which a further pressing or shaping body may be provided between the outer plates to con tact the confronting surfaces of the trouser legs during pressing, and which also has such a recess registering with the cutouts of the press plates, are already known from the prior art. It is the purpose of this recess to ensure that the upper part of the trousers, bounded by the crotch seam, remains outside the area of pressure during ironing. This recess usually takes the form of a shallow arc. Owing to these cutouts, however, the trousers are not covered over the entire length of their creases by the press-plate assembly. v

In some instances such pressing or ironing machines include a flat insert for clamping the waistband of the trousers, located in the ironing position between the press or ironing plates, so that the waistband and the upper trouser part can be ironed simultaneously.

In order to be able to iron the entire zone along which the trousers are to be folded, or pressed into sharp creases, to a point just below the waistband, it has already been proposed in an ironing device known from the prior art, equipped with an insert between the press plates, to provide this insert with a recess shaped so as to conform to the course of the entire crotch seam.

With such pressing devices it is, however, possible to iron satisfactorily only a single trouser size or trousers with a specific waist size. The recess provided is either too large or too small for other sizes. This means that either some portion of the waistband zone together with other parts is badly ironed or a large part of the zone to be sharply creased at the front and rear end of the upper trousers portion remains unironed because it projects too far beyond the edge of the plate or the recess.

The object of the invention is therefore to form the ironing device so that trousers of all possible sizes can always be uniformly ironed to the same degree of completeness, independently of length and width, to a loca- "ice tion immediately below the waistband with a desired spacing of the trouser creases from the waistband and in one and the same ironing device.

The nature of the invention by which this problem is solved consists in the recess having a shape at the zone farthest from the edge conforming to the smallest trousers as regards waistband size and crotch seam, this recess widening from the level of the waistband of the smallest trousers and diverging toward the plate edge to a width corresponding to the widest trouser waistband. This width corresponds to the width of the fiat folded trousers at the top' of the waistband, the front parts of the waistband being folded inwardly in a manner known from the prior art.

With' a recess formed in this manner the trousers can always be inserted or suspended in the ironing device irrespectively of their width and length so that their waistband, particularly at the trouser front side, comes to lie a predetermined distance above a peripheral point of the recess which together with the waistband defines an unpressed region, while from this point on the trousers are pressed, particularly along the front and rear zones which are to be sharply creased. The upper central portion remains free from ironing pressure. It is merely necessary to pull the flattened trousers sufficiently far into the recess so that the waistband with the front parts folded inwardly is located at the desired level just above the edge of the recess at its front and rear ends. I

The lowest point of this recess need not necessarily be located directly on the trouser crotch seam but can be spaced from this seam.

Within the scope of the invention it is possible to provide a flank of the recess or outcut with a bend in the region of contact with the smallest trouser waistband; This bend may be either sharp-edged or curved. It is essential only that the flank at this point changes in shape, its divergence from the opposite flank increasing above the level of the bend.

By adopting this measure the overall depth of the recess can be kept small. Moreover, because of the less steep rise of the edge in the outer one of the recess, matching of the upper part of the trousers to the shape of the cutout is greatly facilitated so that the trouser waistband is always located at a certain distance above its peripheral edge. In anadvantageous embodiment of the invention it is therefore recommended that at least one of the two edges of the cutout extends rectilinearly outwardly from the level where the width of the cutout corresponds to the smallest waistband size. The trousers can be aligned or displaced parallel to themselves along this rectilinearly extending edge section.

In applying the invention it is particularly advantageous to provide the aforementioned insert, conventionally formed as a cloth stretched across a swiveling frame or as a flat plate, with a cutout or recess conforming to those of the ironing plates bracketing this insert. The recess of the insert may also be deeper than that of the ironing plates. If desired, only the insert may be provided with the recess in accordance with the invention.

The invention also encompasses a device for tensioning the trouser waistband, this device being at least two-dimensionally movable in the zone of the recess of the ironing plates in the ironing position. This tensioning device can be displaced in any possible position in at least two different directions in contrast to known ironing presses where it can be shifted in only one direction along a fixed guideway. The device can therefore be moved into any position as determined by the different trouser sizes and widths in accordance with the trouser waistband located in the zone of the recess, or it can always follow the trousers which are displaced relatively to the recess into the desired ironing position. The versatility afforded by the recess shape in accordance with the invention for adapting trousers of any size and width to the recess is thus enhanced.

This feature is also applicable to conventional pressing machines and very useful because of the widely different widths occurring in any given trouser length. In one embodiment of the invention the device for tensioning the trouser waistband is located at the end of an arm which is movable in at least two directions in the press zone. Such an arm may be movable both in the longitudinal direction of the plates as well as at right angles thereto. In another particularly favorable embodiment of the invention the tensioning device is rotatably mounted at the end of an arm which is movably articulated to a further arm which is swivel-mounted on the ironing device so that the tensioning device can be displaced in any desired direction with the plane of the trousers placed in the ironing position.

Within the scope of the invention the waistband-tensioning device can be advantageously provided with a blowing device directed into the interior of the upper part of the trousers so that this part is simultaneously tensioned and steamed during the ironing or pressing operation. In accordance with the invention the tensioning device can be detachably located in its holder, for example by means of a simple plug-in, bayonet, screw or similar fastening, so that together with the pair of trousers attached thereto it can be brought to the ironing press and inserted into same. The device can be provided with a coupling for connection to an air or steam pipeline serving the blowing device. The air or steam feed is applied advantageously through the interior of the hollow retaining arms.

To facilitate handling of the ironing device, and in accordance with a particularly advantageous feature of the invention, a bottom plate or the like defining in a manner known per se, a supporting surface for the upper part of the trousers is located in the region of the cutout of the lower of the two pressing or ironing plates and is movably mounted on a holder so as to be capable of being swung away from that cutout. In accordance with the invention the bottom plate can be located on an arm which is adjustable in the vertical direction but can also be designed so as to be movable in a direction parallel to the plane of the lower ironing plate. One part of this bottom plate may be slidable relatively to another part thereof in a manner reducing the plate surface area. This feature on the one hand provides the required support for the upper part of the trousers in the recess zone and on the other hand ensures that the bottom plate does not interfere with the fastening of the tensioning device to the trouser waistband and with the finishing work, particularly when blowing out the upper part of the trousers.

If the ironing device is equipped with an insert which takes the form of a flat middle plate located between the pressing or ironing plates, it is also possible within the scope of the invention that the pressing surfaces of this middle plate and the corresponding surfaces of the ironing plates are so curved that the sunfaces which act as supports for the trouser legs prior to the start of the pressing operation have a convex shape. This ensures that the trouser legs are smoothed in the zone of the creases. In particular, with the ironing plates in a horizontal pressing position, the pressing surfaces in accordance with the invention are curved in the upward direction in the middle plate so that the latter plate-as viewed in section-has a convexconcave shape. With the ironing plates in a vertical pressing position, on the other hand, the two pressing surfaces of the middle plate are curved outwardly so that the middle plateas viewed in cross-section-has a biconvex shape. In this context and within the scope of the invention it is advantageous to make the middle plate hollow and permeable to air and to provide means for connecting it to a suction and/or steam line. It is advisable to provide a heating device in the interior of the hollow middle P ate to avoid the format on of on ensat n the interior walls. To ensure better contact of the trouser legs with the middle plate the invention also provides that with a vertical outer position of the pressing plates the pressing surfaces of the middle plate, and correspondingly those of the pressing plates, diverge from each other so that-as seen in a vertical section-they form an acute angle which opens downwardly.

Embodiments of the invention are diagrammatically illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a table ironing press according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a part view of an ironing plate with a recess in accordance with the known state of the art;

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a press plate or insert with a recess in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 4 is a view of a table ironing press with a waisthand-tensioning device in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the lower plate of the ironing device with a pair of trousers in the ironing position;

FIG. 6 is an example of a retaining device for the waistband-tensioning device;

FIG. 7 is a side view of a part of the ironing press in accordance with FIG. 6 with a tensioning device which is detachable from the holding device;

FIG. 8. is a side view of the lower part of a table ironing press with a longitudinal section through the lower ironing plate taken approximately along the central axis of the recess;

FIG. 9 is a plan view of the lower ironing plate shown in accordance with FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a side view of a table ironing press, with the \middle plate shown in cross-section; and

FIG. 11 is a plan view of an ironing device with vertically mounted pressing or ironing plates, the middle plate being shown in section.

For the pressing or ironing operation the trousers are placed, in a manner known per se, onto a lower plate 1, FIG. 1, so that the upper part of the pair of trousers is located in the zone of the recess 2. A supporting plate 3 can be provided on the underside of cutout or recess 2 so that the upper path of the trousers does not hang down loosely.

A fiat insert 5 (also provided with a corresponding recess or cutout 4) is then swung down onto the lower trouser leg and the upper trouser leg is stretched fiat on the upper surface of the insert. By swinging down an upper plate 6, which has a cutout identical with recess 2 of the lower plate 1, the pair of trousers is then ironed or pressed in a manner known per se.

The shape of the recess of known ironing presses (FIG. 2) conforms to the shape of the trousers crotch seam. However, this applied strictly only to a certain trouser size. Only trousers of this specific size are ironed in accordance with the requirement that not only the central portion of the upper part 10 remain free but also a zone of a height 7 down from the waistband be left uncovered by the ironing plates, while below this zone the trousers 8 are pressed or ironed along their entire length. In trousers with a larger waistband size, part of the waistband zone on the front and rear sides of the trousers is gripped in an undesirable manner by the plates and also pressed. In the case of smaller trousers 9 not only the central upper section will remain free of ironing pressure but also the zones of the front and rear sides of the trousers so that no creases are produced at these locations. Even if the upper trouser section 10 is pulled further into the cutouts 2, 4 as indicated in FIG. 2 at 9', it is not possible for the required trouser creases to be produced in the zone 11 of the front and rear side of the upper part 10 since that part will remain free from pressure.

The cutouts 2, 4 according to the invention include a U- sh'aped 'bight section 16 with a vertex point 12 most distant from the recessed minor edge of the generally rectangular plate 1, 5 or 6. The shape of the bight portion 16 conforms to the crotch seam 13 0f the seat of the smallest pair of trousers 14 to be ironed, this portion terminating at a level 17 below the region of the waistband 15 of that pair. At this level, the width of the cutout corresponds approximately to the waistband width of the smallest pair of trousers 14 in its folded condition; the flank 21, 24 of the cutout then diverges to a width corresponding approximately to the waistband width of the largest pair of trousers to be ironed. One of the lines tangent to the curve 16 at level 17, coinciding in FIG. 3 with an extension of flank 24, includes with the opposite tangent 20 an angle 18 which is substantially smaller than the angle 19 included between the flanks 21 and 24. It will be noted that the two tangents 20, 24 converge, like the flanks 21, 24, in a downward direction, i.e. away from the recessed upper edge of the plate. These flanks 21, 24 are the sides of a generally trapezoidal portion of the cutout which adjoints the U-shaped bight portion 16 along the minor base 17 of the trapezoid.

With a recess thus formed it is always possible to shift the upper part 22 of any pair of trousers 23, larger than the smallest trousers 14, into such a position that the waistband is separated by a predetermined spacing 7 from the region of the ironing pressure. The trousers 23 need only be shifted parallel to themselves along the rectilinear flank 21 while maintaining the spacing 7 from the waistband along the front edge of the trousers until a like separation occurs along the rear edge between the waistband and the point of intersection of that edge with flank 24.

The flank 24 located opposite the flank 21 may also extend rectilinearly above the level 17 at an angle less steep shown in the drawing. As regards its depth, the cutouts 2, 4 can extend still farther into the plate surface than corresponds to the deepest point of the crotch seam 13 of the smallest pair of trousers 14. The invention can be applied not only to table ironing presses but also to ironing devices with vertically disposed plates.

In FIG. 4 a waistband tensioning device 25 is located on the left-hand edge of the table ironing press opposite the recess 2 of the lower pressing plate 1, the precise shape of the recess being visible in FIG. 5; this tensioning device comprises a tensioning frame or gripper 26 and a gripper head 27. For the sake of clarity, the recessed insert 5 has been omitted in FIG. 4.

The pair of trousers 23 (FIG. 5) secured with its waistband to the tensioning frame 26 of the tensioning device 25 is moved into the desired ironing position on the lower plate so that the waistband and a zone of predetermined height immediately below the latter is not subjected to the ironing pressure. To enable the tensioning device 25 to follow easily each movement of the pair of trousers 23 or of the waistband thereof, the waistbandtensioning device in the embodiment according to FIGS. 6 and 7 is located on a holder consisting of two arms 30, 31. The arms 30, 31 are joined by an articulation 32. The arm 30 is pivotably joined at 33 with the sub-frame 34'of the ironing press for swinging in a horizontal plane.

The lower plate 1 of the ironing press has been omited in FIG. 6 for the sake of clarity. A disk 35 (FIG. 7) is pivotably mounted on the arm 31 and is provided with pins 36 on its upper surface. These pins fit into corresponding holes on the underside of the tensioning-frame head 27 which is placed on the disk 35 and retained by the ins 36. The pins 36 and the holes corresponding to these pins can, however, also be omitted if the plate 35 is provided with a short shaft or pipe stub 39 and if the underside of the gripper head 27 is formed with a recess, or with a projection 38 having such a recess, in order toaccommodate this stub in the manner of a socket or sleeve. If the stub and the mating recess on the tensioning-frame head have a circular cross-section and a rather loose fit, it is not necessary for the plate 35 to be rotatably carried on the arm 31 or on a bracket 41 connected to this arm.

It is also advantageous to design the parts 38, 39 as coup-ling members so that a blowing device located in the tensioning-frame head and directed through the tensioning-frame into the interior of the upper part of the trousers can be connected to an air and/or steam pipeline 40 which is located externally. The pipeline 40 is guided in accordance with the invention through the interior of the hollow supporting arms 30, 32. The arms themselves may be tubular to form pipes for the passage of air and steam or they may accommodate a suitable conduit in their interior. To facilitate handling of the tensioning device together with the trousers attached to it, the tensioning-frame head 27 is provided with a handle 42.

Because of the presence of the swivel joints 32, 33 the arms 30, 31 can be pivoted as desired in a plane parallel to the lower pressing plate 2. The waistband-tensioning device 25 secured to the rotatable disk 35 can therefore be shifted as desired in any direction in the plane of the trousers 23 (FIG. 5) held in the ironing position. Independently of their size and width, the trousers 23 can therefore always be moved into such an ironing position that the upper part of the trousers projects to a predetermined extent from the edge of the cutouts, 2, 4 in the zone of the waistband and that the creases produced by the ironing pressure of the plates begin only at a location just below the upper waistband edge. In operation, the trousers attached to the tensioning device 25 are placed on the ironing press. The operator grips the tensioning device by the handle 42 and the trousers 23 in the zone of the trouser legs so that the operator can fit the tensioning device onto the disk 35 with one hand and spread the trousers 23 on the under plate 1 with the other hand.

At the same time the operator pushes the tensioning device 25 together with the trousers, which will then be engaged by the holder 30*, 31, 35, and while maintaining the desired spacing 7 (FIG. 3) at the front between the waistband and the preferably rectilinear flank 21 of the cutouts 2, 4, so that the tensioning device is moved sufficiently far to ensure that at the opposite trouser edge the waistband will have the desired spacing from the flank 24, i.e. from the point where the rear pleat is to start in the downward direction. Because of this optional slidability of the device 25 for tensioning the trouser waistband it is possible for all trousers, irrespectively of their size and width, to be provided with uniformly long ironing creases which will always start at a desired predetermined level below the trouser waistband.

These measures in accordance with the invention can be applied with advantage not only to table ironing presses but also to other ironing devices as, for example, those with vertical press plates. In table ironing presses and other ironing devices in which an upper press plate can be pressed against a lower plate, we may provide a split bottom plate 3 (FIGS. 8 and 9) which can be moved out of the zone of the recess 2. The plate 3' consisting of two parts 46, 47, is positioned in this recess 2 or immediately below the latter on an arm 44 which also acts as a piston rod of a pressure cylinder 45. The piston rod is movable in the direction of the arrow 49, i.e. upwardly and downwardly, so that the plate 3' can be moved into the recess 2 whence it can be lowered again if it is no longer required as a support for the top portion of the trousers.

The part 47 of the plate 3' is slidable in the direction of the arrow 43 on the part 46 as can be seen from FIG. 8 so that if a tensioning device to be attached to the trouser waistband has a larger dimension at right angles to the plate plane, the front part of the plate, which may have an obstructive effect, can be pushed back without eliminating the necessary support for the top portion of the trousers. The two parts 46, 47 may be placed under the tension of a spring or similar element so that they return automatically into their normal position if they are once again removed from the region of the waistband-tensioning device.

The mobility of the bottom plate can be obtained within the scope of the invention in a different way, particularly for ironing devices in which the lower ironing plate is mounted not precisely horizontally but at some angle other than 90 with reference to the vertical. For example, the plate may also be mounted parallel to the plane of the lower ironing plate so as to be capable of being pushed back entirely.

In order to improve the quality of the ironing creases, beginning at the periphery of the recess and extending down to the trouser-leg end, it may be desirable to curve the pressing surfaces of the inserts 5, in the devices of FIGS. 10 and 11 where these inserts take the form of hollow plate-shaped bodies. In FIG. 10 the pressing surfaces of the three pressing elements 1, 5, 6 are all curved in the upward direction, that is to say, the pressing surface-53 of the pressing plate 1 resting on the base 34 is convex, the pressing surface 51 of the upper press plate 6 is concave and the middle plate 5 is of convex-concave section. The pressing plate 6 and the middle plate 5 are moved in the direction of the arrow 50 against the pressing plate 1 by the arms 61, 62.

The trouser legs, which during ironing are located between the pressing surface of a representative pressing plate and the middle plate, tend, as is known, to distort so that their edge zones 57, 58, which are to be pleated, lift somewhat from their support surfaces 52, 53 and curve upwardly. On pressing the curved surface 51 against the trouser leg 54 or the curved surface 55 against the trouser leg 56, the trouser edges 57, 58 are first gripped by the overlying surface and pushed outwardly, approximately in the direction of the arrows 59, 60, before they are firmly pressed together in a direction, perpendicular to the tangential plane of the respective pressing surface. Because of the curvature of the pressing surfaces the trouser legs 54, 56 thus experience a certain outward stretch in the zone of their edges 57, 58. The same effect is also obtained in an ironing machine with pressing plates 1', 6 arranged vertically and with the middle plate 5' disposed therebetween, also vertically, in accordance with FIG. 11.

In this embodiment the pressing surfaces of the individual pressing elements are curved from the middle outwardly that is to say, the pressing surfaces 53', 51' of the pressing plates 1', 6' are concave while the pressing surfaces 52', 55 of the middle plate 1, on which the insides of the trouser legs 54, 56 rest under their own weight, have a convex shape. If the pressing plates 1, 6' are pressed against the middle plate 5 in the direction of the arrows 63, 64, the edge zones 57, 58 of the trouser legs 54, 56 will once again be stretched first in the direction of the arrows 59, 60.

The interior of the hollow insert 5, 5' is bounded by walls, forming one pair of pressing surfaces, which have openings 65 permeable to air and steam. An inlet 66 for connection of air and/or steam lines to the interior of the insert is also provided.

A heating device, for example a heating coil consisting of conduits 67, prevents the formation of condensate on the interior walls of the insert.

If the ironing plates and the middle plate or insert are mounted vertically, as in FIG. 11, it is convenient if the cross-section of the insert gradually increases in a downward direction, that is to say, if the middle plate 5 has a somewhat tapered shape in a longitudinal section so that its pressing surfaces, and correspondingly the two pressing surfaces of the outer plates, always include an acute angle which opens in the downward direction. This ensures that the trouser legs 54, 56 which are vertically suspended make firm contact over their entire lengths on both sides of the middle plate 5.

We claim:

1. In a trouser-pressing apparatus comprising a pair of relatively displaceable press plates adapted to be moved into a generally parallel operating position for ironing a pair of trousers between them, said plates being provided with coextensive cutouts to accommodate the top portion of a pair of trousers to be ironed, the improvement wherein each of said cutouts, extending inwardly from an edge of the respective plate, consists of a generally trapezoidal portion proximal to said edge and a U-shaped bight portion remote from said edge, said bight portion adjoining said trapezoidal portion along a lineparallel to said edge representing the minor base of the trapezoid, the tangents to the periphery of the cutout at opposite extremities of the U diverging toward said edge at a lesser angle than the flanks of said trapezoidal portion forming the sides of the tropezoid.

2. The improvement defined in claim 1 wherein one of said flanks is in line with the tangent to the adjoining extremity of the U.

3. The improvement defined in claim 1, further comprising a flat insert between said plates, said insert :being provided at one of its edges with a cutout of the same shape as the cutouts of said plates and coextensive therewith.

4. The improvement defined in claim 3 wherein said apparatus further comprises tensioning means engageable with the waistband of the trousers to be ironed and disposed adjacent said one edge of said insert, and mounting means for said tensioning means enabling two-dimensional displacement of said tensioning means substantially in the plane of said insert.

5. The improvement defined in claim 4 wherein said mounting means includes a pair of articulated arms pivotally mounted upon said apparatus, said tensioning means being detachably fixed to said articulated arms for interchange of said tensioning means with other similar tensioning means affixed to subsequent pairs of trousers to be ironed.

6. The improvement defined in claim 5, further comprising blower means on said tensioning means for directing a stream of fluid into the interior of the trousers engaged by the respective tensioning means, said mounting means including duct means connectable with said blower means for supplying said fluid thereto.

7. The improvement defined in claim 1, further comprising a support plate at least partly receivable in the cutout of a lower one of said plates, and actuating means coupled with said support plate for shifting same between first position wherein said support plate is located in the last-mentioned cutout and a second position in which said support plate is withdrawn from said last-mentioned cutout, said support plate forming a supporting surface'for the waistband portion of a pair oftrousers disposed between said press plates along said insert in said first position of said support plate. 8. The improvement defined in claim 7 wherein said actuating means includes an arm shiftable transversely to said body for displacing said support plate in a direction perpendicular to itself and means adjustably connecting said support plate to said arm for movement parallel to at least one of said press plates for varying the area of the support plate exposed through said recess.

9. The improvement defined in claim 1 wherein said insert is a hollow body disposed between said press plates and has a pair of fluid-permeable pressing surfaces "complementary to those of said press plates and curved transversely whereby the seams of'the' trousers engaged between each of said pressing surfaces and the respective press plate are stretched outwardly, further comprising fluid-duct means communicating with'the interior of said body 10. The improvement defined in claim 9 wherein said press plates are disposed generally horizontally and include an upwardly-convex lower press plate and a downwardly concave upper press plate, said body being of concavo-convex configuration. v

. 11. The improvement defined in claim 9 whereinsaid press plates are vertically disposed andare inwardly concave, said body having adouble-convex configuration.

12. The improvement defined in claim 11 wherein the confronting surfaces of said body and said press plates taper toward each other upwardly to define between them, in vertical cross-section, acute angles opening downwardly.

13. The improvement defined in claim 9, further comprising heating means within said body for preventing the development of condensate therein.

14. A trouser-pressing apparatus comprising a pair of relatively displaceable press plates, including an upper plate and a lower plate, adapted to be moved into a generally parallel operating position for ironing a pair of trousers between them, said plates being provided with coextensive cutouts extending inwardly from respective edges thereof to accommodate the top portion of a pair of trousers to be ironed, tensioning means engageable with the waistband of the trousers to be ironed and disposed adjacent the cutout of said lower plate, and mounting means on said lower plate for said tensioning means enabling two-dimensional displacement of said tensioning means substantially in a plane parallel to the lower plate engaged thereby.

15. A trouser-pressing apparatus comprising a pair of relatively displaceable press plates, including an upper plate and a lower plate, adapted to be moved into a generally parallel operating position for ironing a pair of trousers between them, said plates being provided with coextensive cutouts extending inwardly from respective edges thereof to accommodate the top portion of a pair References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,817,344 8/1931 Braun 38-12 2,241,997 5/1941 Ivey 3836 X 2,669,374 2/1954 Jones 223--57 2,973,594 3/1961 Cole 38-17 2,994,978 8/1961 Skovira 38-17 X 3,117,704 1/ 1964 McMillan 22373 3,208,652 9/1965 Zimmermann 223-73 3,305,956 2/1967 Fleischer 38-16 JORDAN FRANKLIN, Primary Examiner. G. V. LARKIN, Assistant Examiner.

U.S. Cl. X.R. 223-57, 74; 3836 

